Dish of Duck Green Curry
(click to enlarge)

Duck Green Curry


Thailand   -   Gaeng Keo Wan Pet

Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  
2+ main
***
2 hrs
Yes
Rich and delicious! My way, using duck legs, may not be how they do it in Thailand (they just chop a duck into pieces), but it works for me - less fat when cooking and it's a lot easier to serve and eat.

1-1/2
18
1
3
1
2
4
1/2
1

#
oz
T

T
T

t
T

Duck Legs (1)
Coconut Milk (2 cans)
Thai Basil
Thai Chili (2)
Cilantro
Green Curry Paste (3)
Kaffir Lime Leaves (4)  
Salt
Fish Sauce (5)

Prep   -   (40 min)
  1. Skin and bone DUCK LEGS removing all fat. Reserve bones for stock.
  2. Cut the skins and fat into small pieces, put them in an iron skillet and fry them slowly until lightly browned and crisp. Eat the cracklings with a little salt and save the duck fat for cooking - neither is used in this recipe.
  3. Cut Duck Meat into bite size pieces about 1/4 inch thick.
  4. Open Coconut Milk without shaking. Spoon the Coconut Cream off the top of both cans until you have 2/3 cup. Keep separate from the milk.
  5. Chop BASIL small and keep soaking in cold water until needed.
  6. Cut CHILIS into slivers. Chop CILANTRO small. Mix.
Run   -   (1-1/3 hr)
  1. In a spacious sauté pan heat Coconut Cream over moderate heat. Stir until the coconut oil starts to separate from the solids - it will get a very glossy appearance.
  2. Stir in Green Curry Paste and fry stirring until it is well distributed and aromatic.
  3. Stir in Duck until well coated, then stir in Coconut Milk, Lime Leaves, Salt and Fish Sauce. Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally, until duck is tender. If the sauce starts to thicken too much, cover and turn the heat down a little.
  4. Stir in Chili mix and simmer a few more minutes.
  5. Drain Basil, stir in and take off heat.
  6. Let sit for a couple minutes, then tilt the pan to pool the oil and use a shallow spoon to remove the excess. Not all of it - It's duck, it's supposed to be rich.
  7. Serve hot with plenty of steamed Jasmine rice.
NOTES:
  1. Duck Legs:

      1-1/2 pounds will yield about 12 ounces of skinless boneless meat. Legs are easily available frozen in the Asian (East or Southeast) markets. You could also use breasts but they're hard to find and expensive around here because they all go to the restaurant trade. For breasts use about 1-1/4 pound to get 12 ounces.
  2. Chili:

      This amount makes for a curry that's not too hot. If you don't have Thai, green arbols are good, or a single largish serrano - or use your own judgement. For details see our Thai Chilis page.
  3. Green Curry Paste:

      Best made at home by our recipe Green Curry Paste. "Thai Green Curry Sauce" sold in yuppie outlets is not suitable.
  4. Kaffir Lime Leaves:

      These come 2 leaves to a stem, so this recipe needs 2 stems. For details See our Kaffir Lime page. If you don't have them, grate the zest of the limes before you squeeze them for lime juice.
  5. Fish Sauce:

      This clear liquid is as essential to Southeast Asian cuisine as it was to Imperial Rome. If you are unfamiliar with it, see our Fish Sauce - Introduction page.
  6. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch, ar=as required tt=to taste
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